Martin Luther King Jr.’s Inconvenient Call To Action
One of the great joys of hosting my podcast is meeting wonderful people from all parts of our country. One of them was John Wagner, a semi-retired pastor from Middletown, Ohio, who was a prominent voice in our three-part podcast about community and school leaders in his city who found a way to defuse a school culture war.
In response to my recent interview with Tim Shriver, John posted a comment about treating others, especially our adversaries, with dignity rather than contempt. In response, I offered a comment of my own, but I’ve continued to ponder, even struggle myself, with John’s dilemma.
This is what John wrote: “I enthusiastically affirm Tim Shriver’s basic thesis as well as his analysis. I believe it is particularly effective on the local level where concerns are less attached to entrenched political positions, and I fervently hope it will gain traction at the state and national level as well…I must confess, however, that these days, I approach this kind of advice with some wariness. As someone who has more privileges than most, I’ve found I can be more invested in dialogue than results. I place a high value on good manners and mutual respect, but I forget to keep them in perspective. Good manners are one thing – muting our concerns in the face of an immediate and terrible injustice is another. The best model for me is still “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” – I re-read it again today.”
As I write this BLOG, we are just days away from our national holiday recognizing Martin Luther King, Jr. known for promoting hope, unity, love, and nonviolence during the civil rights movement of the ’60s. What’s convenient for many of us to ignore are some of the other things that Dr. King stood for in the face of injustice. In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, King calls on us to act and not mute our concerns, as John wrote, in the face of injustice. In 1963, King and his followers tried negotiating with Birmingham’s “city fathers” to address the glaring injustices against Black residents, including the frequent bombings of Black family’s homes and churches, the unfair treatment of Blacks in court, and the humiliating racist signs that appeared in Birmingham’s store windows. After negotiations failed to produce results and were viewed as a delay tactic, King and others were jailed for their non-violent actions.
“As the weeks and months unfolded, we realized we were the victims of a broken promise. The signs remained. As in so many experiences of the past, we were confronted with blasted hopes, and the dark shadow of a deep disappointment settled upon us. So we had no alternative except that of preparing for direct action, whereby we would present our very bodies as a means of laying our case before the conscience of the local and national community,” King wrote.
What are some of the lessons of King’s life for us today? Here’s my take. I invite you to share your own views with me and my readers. Surely, we must strive to treat others - even our staunchest adversaries - with dignity because, practically speaking, it’s unwise not to. As Tim Shriver told me, “Treating them with contempt only makes an enemy for your cause.” Yes, we must invite our foes to engage in civil dialogue and be willing to negotiate in good faith.
But when these things fail to remedy harmful injustices or to lessen needless suffering, no matter who is affected, King says we have an obligation to take non-violent action. I am inspired by King’s words near the end of his letter: “We will reach the goal of freedom in Birmingham and all over the nation because the goal of America is freedom. Abused and scorned though we may be, our destiny is tied up with the destiny of America.”
One lesson that I have learned from today’s contentious debates over social justice and equity is that we must not view the problem only through a racial lens. Class, which cuts across racial lines affecting access to healthcare, food, education, and housing, may be a more accurate and less polarizing lens. I have also learned that injustice and suffering do not always result from self-serving oppressors. In my community, food insecurity and the lack of affordable housing pose serious challenges for a growing number of lower-income working families.
But, unlike the resistance that King faced in Birmingham, I’ve not encountered any resistors to blame or to negotiate with in my community on these issues. These problems are more likely a product of complacency, neglect, or perhaps the belief that these problems are unsolvable. If this is true, protesting, calling out civic officials, assuming they don’t care, would likely only put people on the defensive and make matters worse. There are times when we’re ready to fight when a fight is not really warranted. What makes more sense, at least as a first step, is to see if leaders are willing to acknowledge the problem and then work together toward solutions. I’m happy to report this approach is actually working in my community!
A final note about John Wagner, who worries about being more invested in dialogue than in results. A few months back, John joined a diverse interfaith delegation of over 25 individuals who traveled to Gaza near the Israeli border. Serving as a “protective presence,” they put their personal safety on the line for innocent residents caught in the crossfire of this tragic conflict.
Reflecting on what he learned after returning to his home in Ohio, John wrote, “I want people to know, other Christians especially, that this can be a calling. Jesus consistently risked his reputation and well-being in siding with marginalized people, including Gentiles. Ultimately, this contributed to his being crucified. He is calling all of us to do something that puts us outside the norm, that puts us on the side of suffering people.”
“For those Christians who have large constituencies and are accountable to more people than someone like me, I ask that you still give this serious consideration despite the risk to your leadership in other matters. You will likely put people off by speaking out, but I believe the situation demands it. Most of us, at one time or another, wonder what we’d do if we were Christians in pre-war Nazi Germany or were present at the beginning of the civil rights movement in the fifties. I believe we are in one of those times when we are eventually going to wish we’d been among the faithful.”
I am inspired by John’s words and by King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail. I hope as a private citizen, but also in my new role as a school board trustee, I will treat those around me with dignity and will summon the courage, when needed, to make the world a better place for all.
Ken Futernick, January 15, 2025